[R2D2]

Originally Posted by sachinj12

Some of the older lens might not focus on these cams. Others can tell you which those are, I, for one, remember the D5000. Shaju,R2D2 and others, which of these don't support auto focus?

AFAIK none of these camera bodies have built in focus motors - so you cannot use older lenses with screw drive focus mechanisms. AF-S are the only ones that work

Originally Posted by HellwratH

I got Vivitar Series 1 90mm f2.5 macro lens (Minolta mount) and Lester Dine 105mm f2.8 macro lens. I have also added Olympus OM 50mm f1.8+25,14,14,7mm extension tubes and a Canon FD 200mm f2.8 IF.

Cool! Congrats dude. I've read a lot about Vivitar Series 1. BTW, Lester Dine lenses, are you a Dentist? Look forward to seeing the photos

Originally Posted by bluevolt

Also advise me that from where I should make the purchase; JJmehta, official site, reseller, croma or any other?

Best stick to authorised sellers/dealers. Or any future warranty claim could be rejected. As for which camera - browse thru these pages and there's plenty of advice.

Originally Posted by sachinj12

Personally, I wouldn't be comfortable buying stuff above a couple of hundred bucks online. Not when I am plonking 40k.

I agree. I've bought some PC related parts and other items from US and other sites. But cameras and lenses will never be in my online purchase list and most certainly not from Indian e-retailers. I will check the article before plonking a large sum of money down on the counter. In India, the Latin phrase Caveat Emptor needs to be taken very seriously.

[HellwratH]

Originally Posted by shajufx

Congrats buddy !! Waiting to see some master pieces.

I too got my extension tubes today (9mm, 16mm & 30mm) from eBay HK for around US$7 and a set of diffusers for SB600 flash (blue, yellow & white) that's US$4. Tubes are metal and black powder coated, hope to explore it next weekend as I am travelling tonight for 3 days.

Diffuser set is good quality plastic, but sadly not the correct size of SB600, it is lose and require a sellotape to stay firm. I played with the white piece, trying to make the slot bit wider with a cutter, then tried heating a screw driver and melting a portion, then cut it into a tiny piece with a kitchen scissor, now it has become a useless piece of plastic (only the white ).

Nice, waiting for some awesome macros from you Shaju . I am adding a focusing rail next.

Originally Posted by R2D2

Cool! Congrats dude. I've read a lot about Vivitar Series 1. BTW, Lester Dine lenses, are you a Dentist? Look forward to seeing the photos

Thanks R2D2. Will upload photographs once I get the lenses, still waiting for their delivery. I am not a dentist, but those lenses are SHARP as dentists' used them for high magnification dental work, just that now they're used by macro photographers .

[C300]

Originally Posted by R2D2

I agree. I've bought some PC related parts and other items from US and other sites. But cameras and lenses will never be in my online purchase list and most certainly not from Indian e-retailers. I will check the article before plonking a large sum of money down on the counter. In India, the Latin phrase Caveat Emptor needs to be taken very seriously.

What about Adorama and B&H? I believe they do international delivery to India. But custom clearance will be an issue,.

Originally Posted by HellwratH

Thanks guys. I got Vivitar Series 1 90mm f2.5 macro lens (Minolta mount) and Lester Dine 105mm f2.8 macro lens. Vivitar is supposed to be one of the sharpest lenses ever made and Lester Dine has a cult following for it's contrast and sharpness.

I have also added Olympus OM 50mm f1.8+25,14,14,7mm extension tubes and a Canon FD 200mm f2.8 IF.

All of these for the G1, ah, gotta love the micro four thirds system .

Congrats. Heard some good things about Vivitar. So, are you using an adapter for G1 mount?

[HellwratH]

Originally Posted by C300

Congrats. Heard some good things about Vivitar. So, are you using an adapter for G1 mount?

Thanks. Yep, I have 3 adapters for G1 and another one on it's way. I have Nikon, Canon FD, Olympus OM adapters so far. The Minolta MD adapter is on it's way .

[R2D2]

Originally Posted by C300

What about Adorama and B&H? I believe they do international delivery to India. But custom clearance will be an issue,

You can absolutely trust B&H and Adorama but other than no warranty coverage on DSLRs, some items such lenses (generally come with int. warranties) are marked for shipment only within the US. They ship most items worldwide.

Also, if you buy from them you will wind up paying for shipping + Customs @ ~25% of the CIF value + Octroi in MH. So, unless the item isn't available in India, is a "must have" AND you are ok with the landed cost, I would not recommend this option.

[Sunney]

If my cousin in Singapore bring a D7000 or Canon 5D Mark II, with International Warranty, when he arrive on leave: will he have to pay Custom Duty? For his personal camera, if bring in unpacked condition?

Can anybody advise me?

5D Mark II body is @SDP 2000.
Means about Rs. 76000.

[C300]

Originally Posted by R2D2

Also, if you buy from them you will wind up paying for shipping + Customs @ ~25% of the CIF value + Octroi in MH. So, unless the item isn't available in India, is a "must have" AND you are ok with the landed cost, I would not recommend this option.

In that case its strictly no no.

Originally Posted by Sunney

If my cousin in Singapore bring a D7000 or Canon 5D Mark II, with International Warranty, when he arrive on leave: will he have to pay Custom Duty? For his personal camera, if bring in unpacked condition?

Can anybody advise me?

He can definitely bring it in as a personal camera. Ask him to remove the original packaging.
Those guys at the customs know the value of these high end SLRs so be prepared for some questioning. Some of them just want their share of the pie.

Dude.. 76k for 5DII is a real steal!

[R2D2]

Originally Posted by Sunney

5D Mark II body is @SDP 2000.
Means about Rs. 76000.

Originally Posted by C300

Dude.. 76k for 5DII is a real steal!

A 5D Mk-II for 76K?! That's impossible unless its a refurbished or used unit

OR

I think he meant a 7D. I checked B&H, a Canon 7D comes in at around US $1600 (after a US only $100 rebate) = to about Sing $ 2000. A 5D Mk 2 sells for US$ 2499 = Sing $ 3024.

Canon S'pore lists the 5D @ Sing $3599 MSRP.

Cheers!

[cruiser@0523]

There has been an increase in the price of all canon lenses in Chandigarh, what about other places ?

[Ragul]

A general question - earlier I was considering a pentax body to pair with one of the old non-auto-focus lenses. I discarded the idea to go mainstream with Nikon.
but the question still lingers in my mind ... how difficult is manual focus on a zoom lens for ex: 70-200mm lens? Does it involve a lot of hand-turns on the barrel?

Thanks
--Ragul

[manim]

After many days of research on the net, finally may buy Nikon D3100 tomorrow .
From an official dealer for Rs.27,000.

[ghpk]

Originally Posted by manim

After many days of research on the net, finally may buy Nikon D3100 tomorrow .
From an official dealer for Rs.27,000.

Is it body only or camera + extra lense ?

normally without even using any discounts you can get D3100 body at 23-24K easily with bill and warranty from 2 of most reputed online stores.

[C300]

Originally Posted by Ragul

A general question - earlier I was considering a pentax body to pair with one of the old non-auto-focus lenses. I discarded the idea to go mainstream with Nikon.
but the question still lingers in my mind ... how difficult is manual focus on a zoom lens for ex: 70-200mm lens? Does it involve a lot of hand-turns on the barrel?

Thanks
--Ragul

I wouldn't worry about the hand-turns, that is manageable. The bigger question is what type of objects you plan to shoot with MF lens? MF lenses are best suited for landscapes and still objects but if you plan to shoot kids, sports etc. then its a nightmare IMO.

[manim]

Originally Posted by ghpk

Is it body only or camera + extra lense ?

normally without even using any discounts you can get D3100 body at 23-24K easily with bill and warranty from 2 of most reputed online stores.

It is with the 'AF-S 18-55mm VR Kit Lens'.
So is the rate okay? (Rs.27,000, includes a bag and 4gb class 4 sd card)

I have got my hands on it and started learning.
This is my first DSLR.

Initial impressions:
Looks very plasticky, but appears well built.
LCD is coarse (I expected it).
Size is huge! (compared to my earlier P&S).

Hope it will keep me busy for a few weeks or months learning its various features and capabilities.

I have also bought a tripod for experimenting.

[kirantp]

Friends,

Just wanted to let you know that I recently purchased a used (you can say hardly used brand new lens) Canon EF 75-300MM F/4-5.6 III Lens for my canon EOS Rebel at INR 5,600 from my collague who had bought it while he was in the US and had used the same only a couple of times.

The on-going price in India for the same lense is INR 11,200 - 11,500. Clicked a few pics to check how it came out before closing the deal.

Hope its worth it. Any thoughts and opinions on this always welcome.

Cheers, KTP